MOUNTAIN AREA – Firefighters have been responding over the past few weeks to reports of smoke which turned out to be burn piles lit off by residents.
These burn piles are illegal, as fire restrictions have not been lifted for any elevations in Madera and Mariposa Counties, or any areas in the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.
It may seem that since we have had some precipitation in the past month, that conditions are wet enough to warrant the lifting of burn restrictions, but please be advised that this has not occurred.
People can pick up burn permits, free of charge, at any Cal Fire or Madera County Fire Station, but are not allowed to burn unless it has been declared a burn day.
For current information from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, call 1-877-429-2876. For Mariposa County info, call 1-209-966-1200.
A link to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District is always available on SierraNewsOnline.com under the “Home” tab of the main menu.
Cal Fire estimates that burn restrictions will be lifted within the next month, depending on weather conditions and precipitation amounts. These restrictions are typically lifted in the late fall.
http://www.fire.ca.gov/fire_protection/fire_protection_burnpermits.php
